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fv , --V-. !:-wsi \ 4> v- > -I , w- « * of Misrule K RI'̂ A Cornel Tke Waifo putfortkmerdHeMjr ' No festival of the whole year is so -generally honored as Christmas, and by reason of its general observance there has crept into it so many cus­ toms and practices that it is almost past any one's ability to catalogue them. There is no other festival, per­ haps, so old, and yet so ever new, as this one is; no other day in the long year so wistfully looked forward to with anticipations of happiness; but It has changed like everything else, f d is a very different day from what once was. "Christmas customs, or rather some of those adapted to this time of year, are far more ancient than the festival Itself. It is common knowledge that the mistletoe, for instance, is a Christmas fixture, derived from the Druids, who are also responsible for the Yule clog or log. The custom of singing carols formed an important part of the day's celebration under the Saxon kings, and the mince pies are believed to have been a remnant of cakes consumed at the Roman win­ ter sports, always held at this time of the year. In order to do no violence to the customs of the people, the primitive Church selected the time of the Roman Saturnalia for its Christmas celebration. Almost any ttqae of the year might have been sel­ ected, for there is no authority for Dec. 25 as the date of Christ's birth. In the Middle Ages. While the yule log was burned #®on the hearth upon Christmas eve, and maids were kissed under mistle­ toe in the dark ages, Christmas was •till a religious festival. In order to Snake it attractive to the people, and - also to instruct them in the Bible stories, plays were produced with «reat splendor in many a great cathe­ dral. As the liturgy of the church was in Latin, so, too, were the Christmas plays, but they were easily under­ stood by the people, for even if the words escaped them the costume and the action conveyed a deep meaning. ' AB a rule, there was little literary merit In the plays, having been writ­ ten with the sole idea of conveying in­ struction in a pleasing manner, and r Often containing farcical scenes, •"Which one may Well believe were well received by the crowds that flll- ed the cathedrals at Christmas time. Two of the earliest Christmas plays that have come down to us are to be found in the few fragmentary works of Hilarius, a monk of the twelfth century, who is said to have been an Englishman, and who is known to have been a pupil of the great Abel- ard. Of the three mystery plays which he is thought to have written in collaboration with Jordanus and Simon, probably brother monks, two were evidently played during the Christmas season, namely, "The Im­ age of St. Nicholas," most likely pro­ duced on that saint's day, Dec. 6, and "The History of Daniel," which seems to have been intended for Christmas presentation. "The Image of St. Nicholas" shows more real dramatic ability in its con­ struction than these early productions usually do, for, while its plot is not complicated, there is undoubtedly a plot. In brief, the story is as fol­ lows: An actor, representing an im­ age of St. Nicholas stands in a shrine and discovers half a dozen robbers, who have stolen a treasure box which had been hidden in the shrine for safe keeping by a barbarian. The latter returns, and, finding his treasure gone, bewails his loss, and, whipping the image, demands the return of the goods. The image then goes to the robbers, and telling them that they will not thrive with the stolen goods, they give up the treasure to its owner. The latter, out of gratitude, kneels to the image and adores it, but the saint then appears to him and bids him to worship Ood alone and praise only the name of Christ. The bar­ barian , is then converted and closes the piece with adoration. "The History of Daniel." "The History of Daniel" is a piece in two acts, and was, no doubt, pro­ duced with considerable spectacular effect for the time. In the first act we are shown Belshazzar's Feast, and in the second, which deals with Darius, King of the Medes and Per­ sians, we are shown Daniel denounc­ ed and sent to the den of lions. At Daniel's prayer "there shall appear an angel of the Lord in the den, having a sword, who shuts the mouth of the lions." Darius, finding Daniel saved, puts the latter's envious ac­ cusers in his place and leads Daniel to his throne, ordering the people to adore the true God. Daniel then de­ livers a version in rhyme of the phro- phecy (chapv vii., 13-14) of the coming of the Son of Man, and to close the play another angel appears, singing, "Behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy," etc., "which being finish­ ed," continues what might be called the stage directions, "if it was done at matins, Darius begin 'Te Dcum Laudamus,* but if at vespers, 'Mag­ nificat Anima Mea Dominum.'" "The Slaughter of the Innocents." Another early Christmas play has been found' in an old Orleans manu­ script. It has for its subject "The Slaughter of the Innocents," and was no doubt, frequently played during the Middle Ages in one or another French cathedral? In France and on the continent generally the plays produced were usually the effort of a local learned doctor, although at times copies of popular dramas were made for use by neighboring towns. In the play just noted (Interfectio Puerorum) the part of the innocents was taken by the choir boys, and the other characters, Including the wom­ en, were represented by monks. In one part of the phurch was erected a manger; in another a throne for Her­ od. A distant corner was supposed to represent Egypt, and for fear these distinctions might not be apparent to the beholders, signs were hung over these crude pieces of scenery bearing the names of the places represented. Like most of the mystery plays, the story is briefly told and numerous anthems are interpolated flW the benefit of the choristers. Wakefield Shepherds' Play. Toward the end of the play the boys (the innocents having arisen from the dead) go into the choir; Herod's throne ip then taken by an actor, who represents Archelaus; an angel bids the Holy Family to return • from Egypt, and then the precentor begins the "Te Deum," and so the perform­ ance ends. Some of the finest comic touches to be found in these old religious plays are to be found in the Wakefield Shep­ herds' play, written about the year 1400. The first scene opens with three shepherds watching their flocks, all of them complaining of the cold night. A character called Mak takes part in their rude sport, and upon opportunity steals a sheep. Mak's theft is subsequently discovered, and he is soundly thrashed, a piece of "business" which was certain to arouse laughter in a medieval audi­ ence, for it seldom fails to amuse a modern one. There are certain parts of this comic sc^ne that would be considered too broad nowadays, but it must be understood that at this time the plays had passed out of the. church, and were now acted , on the movable platforms in the public streets. This frolic is followed by the serious scene. An angel appears, singing the "Gloria," after which he announces that Christ is born at Beth­ lehem. : So the shepherds go to Bethlehem and make such presents to the Holy Child as lie within their powers. One presents a "bob of cherries," another a bird and the other a tennis ball. "Acts of the Apostles." During the reign of Francis I. in France, the presentation of a grand mystery of the '"Acts of the Apos­ tles," given during the Christmas sea­ son, was made the occasion of a spec­ tacular proclamation in Paris. In an account of this procession around the different quarters of the French capi­ tal, which is found in a rare little tract published in Paris in 1541, we learn that the procession started out at 8 o'clock on the morning of Dec. 16, attended by "officers of justice, plebeians and others having the regu­ lation of these, rhetoricians and gen­ tlemen of the long robe, as well as of the short." They were preceded by trumpeters and the mayor's archers and at every crossway or public place repeated the proclamation in the King's name. The day fixed for the performance was the feast of St. Stephen, Dec. -26. Under the Stuarts. Christmas masques, mere aseases for gentlemen and ladies of the court to attire themselves in fantastic, gor­ geous or bizarre costumes, were long popular in Italy and in France, and' Henry VIII., having paid a visit to the neighboring realm, imported them into England. During the reign of Elizabeth masques, the work of poets, and in the form we now know them, came into prominence, and the greatest writer of these pleasant but trivial en- entertainments was Ben Jonson, who wrote about three dozen during the reigns of James I. and Charles I. These were sumptuous spectacular entertainmuits, in which the cele­ brated artSiitect, Inigo Jones, was employed to devise "the machinery," or scenery, which was certainly more elaborate in those days than had yet been attempted upon the professional 'stage. While th^ first Christmas kept by Henry VIII. cost £584 19s. 7d. for "disgulsings," the masques of James I. for the year 1609, nearly a century later, cost £4,215. ; These masques, or disguising!, ,"'crc iii Lj' ilke uidit'H and gentlemen of the court; in fact, we |flnd James' queen, Anne of Denmark, appearing with her ivory skin black­ ened to represent a negres3 from the •Niger. The young Prince Charles, afterward the ill-fated King Charles I., |Rlso took part in these Christmas ies- jtivities, as did also the Princess Eliza­ beth and Prises HsHr,r. The Twelfth Night Revels, i Twelfth Night was the usual time for these Christmas revels at White­ hall, and, in fact, had been for: cen­ turies at the English court. Although Kenry VIII. is credited with having adopted the old Italian custom, as Wrly as Edward III.'s time we heard of ludi, or plays, exhibited at court In the Christmas holidays. In 1-348, when Edward kept his Christmas at his cas­ tle* at Guildford, the dresses for the maskers consisted of buckram tun­ ics of various colors, masks of differ-, ent similitudes, namely, faces of wom­ en and men, heads of angels, "made of silver," and mantles embroidered with heads of dragons, peacocks and swans. It is not known that the en­ tertainment consisted of anything be­ yond the most primitive kind of pan­ tomime and posturing, arid it is very doubtful if they even suggested the Grama as tfe know It. i No court entertainments in Eng­ land that had gone before equaled in magnificence the masques written by Johnson and designed by Inigo Joi.es, which made the holidays an annual pleasure to James I. and his queen. King James, notwithstanding the fact his name is inseparably linked with the choicest English version of the Bible, was given to luxurious pleas­ ures, and his young queen, Anne, had the reputation of being a most grace­ ful dancer at a time when dancing ifpas regarded as one of the fine arts. Christmas Masques at Whitehall. King James loved pleasure and Queen Anne nearly made a bankrupt Of him to pay her jewelers. She loved progresses, as they were called, and In one of her royal visits to Bristol spent $150,000 on a costly presenta­ tion of a masque. From this it may be imagined that the Christmas masques held at Whitehall, where the king then lived, must have co3t an •normous outlay, in fact, it is known that one cost $22,000. Ben Jonson wrote twenty-nine masques for his king, most of them being produced at Christmas. The Christmas season usually be­ gan on Dec. 16 and lasted until v'an. 6, although in Elizabeth's day the sea­ son had been known to last for full 3ix weeks or until Shrove Tuesday, her­ alding the coming of Lent, put a stop to the merrymakings. * To the Victorian Era. A growing body of the people in these "days took no part in the merri­ ment of Christmastide; in fact, their loftg-drawn faces, sour looking all the. year, were almost unbearable at the™ season of joy. Alarmed at the goings- on at court, mortified at the licen­ tiousness of the ruling class, they vowed worldly joy was a detestable thing. Life to them was a stern ex­ istence. Even in Elizabeth's time these Puritans had begun their pro­ tests against Christmas celebrations, and against royal pageantries, and in the time of James I. their voice grew so loud that they were caricatured in some of the masques at court. 'They continued, these stern old roundheads, to grow in number and in power, and, having made an end of King Charles I. in a most effectual manner, put their ban on everything that England loved mQst, including Christmas. Under the Commonwealth they stopped the decoration of churches at Christmas, and sent a crier about London with a proclamation to the effect that "Christmas day and all other superstitious festivals should be put down and that a market should be kept upon Christmas day." Per­ sons who insisted upon attending church on Christmas day were imme­ diately arrested. As for the Lord of Misrule and Father Christmas they were banished, and the Parliament by its own act crossed Christmas off the calendar. For ten long years Eng­ land, so closely allied with the ob­ servance of Christmas, was throttled, but Christmas was only in exile; he returned with the royal family when the Restoration was accomplished. The Passing of Old Customs. The days of the last of the Georges saw the departure of many time-hon­ ored Christmas customs in England, and the arrival of some new ones. The singing of carols was One of the first to go, and later in the century the waits disappeared, although a few stragglers now and then annoy Lon­ doners in the Christmas season, until a bobby tells them to move on. Some of the old etchings by Sey­ mour, the first illustrator of Pickwick, which are reproduced on this page, give a spirited idea of how old Christ­ mas was observed In England in the early days of Victoria's reign, when the spirit of the season was still alive and modern ideas had not yet shoved the old customs aside. Who doeth right deeds is-wise born, and who doeth ill deeds vile.--Sir Ed­ win Arnold. '.$C "i '41m THE LIGHT AND THE SONG for One Day, but for AD the Days f The first Christmas dawned on the World in a flood-burst of light and «ong. There had been darkness on the hills and in the hearts, and brood­ ing over all was a silence made heavy ir.ith the worn-out jangle and strife of men; but suddenly, over the hills lot Bethlehem, the sky was aglow with light and the air tremulous with song. The watchers on the weary, wind­ swept hills lifted glad and surprised eyes »to the light that never was, and their hearts took up the rare new music of the angel-song of Peace and Good-will. • Christmas is still the light and song of the world. Across the skies of hu­ man thought and endeavor the clouds of doubt and fear go drifting past; the hilltops are storm-tossed and the valleys are dull with gloom and the weeping rain; but high over all there shines a light that never goes out, and down through the shadow there floats the rainbow , that never with­ draws. The toiler turns from his lonely furroW, and In that Christmas Light finds the strength to endure and the hope to overcome. Not yet has. the noonday come for him, T&e curse of Cain is still unlifted, and in the sweat of his brow he eats his bread. Selfishness and greed and wasting strife still add to the primal burden and make the heart less brave. Class wars with class and man with man in the inevitable quest for enough or in the unsatisfying lust for excess. The hands are hard with the tools of toll and the hearts are hollow with the pretense of trade, and, when, all fs over, to what purpose has it been? But, without flaring, without fading, the love-light of the Bethlehem Star leads to the lit* of Peao* and Good­ will. And the Christmas Light shines steadiest, even as of old, over the place where the young children are. It is not by the might of armies nor by the power of kings, but by the simple life and the simple mind, that greatness comes to the world. A little child shall lead them. Once in the noisy round of the year the hearts of men are young again and their voices lilt the Christmas carols. Not for one day, but for all the days, and for the darker nights of the hard and troubled after-years, the home- light of Christmas is a lamp to the feet and a light to the path. Not shy and evanishing, as though it were lost and out of place In a world like this, but with the mild persistence of strength and right, the Christmas Star still marks for men the way back to the place of the Child. The mys­ tic light and the song of Peace and Good-will have kept unfaded the vis­ ion splendid, and touched the lowliest lot with life's wonder and blood*. •1 AT CHRISTMAS TIME Within u old cathedral dim The white-rob«d choir chant a That old, old story o er again. Of peace on earth, good will toward men. A holy silence fill* the air, And every head is bowed in prayer, While from the tower the joy.beU* chime At Christmas time. Far oat upon the briny deft The mariner his watch doth keep For his bright, guiding Bethlehem Staff The beacon light that shines afar) And, as he sees its kindly rays, ' •" • He thinks of home and other da^||: Of loved ones in a distant clime At Christmas time. theold Dear friends and kindred meet once more, To sit around the hearthstone's glow, And hark to beljs across the snow. They talk of youth and hope and love. And gently speak of those above, I^MS missing ones, with faith sublime, Christmas time. , ---Inez May - ' » * <• J 'u« A f ' "• \ - r • AGCNY GF SOBS HAWfl® and Peeled--Water and Heai , Caused intense Pain--Could Do , No Housework--Grateful • to Cilticura. iW; ^4 Too Late! 'Twas Christmas Eve, and bitter 60UU The snow was falling fast; The icy branches creaked and moaned. And shivered in the blast. He trudged along the frozen readtv ' - A lad with yellow hair, .;v,;V Who bore a bundle on his back,' And hummed a merry air. When last he trod those hills and dale It was a summer day; The birds were singing overhead,*- His heart was light and gay;- His dreams were all of sunny isles And billows bounding free, And, heedless of his mother's- teaife, He left her for the sea. But after many a weary month \ Of hardship, toil and pain, 4 ^ » He longed to see athwart the dUSK : 1 The lights of home again-- Old Tray, the collie, by the fire^V ?' • In his accustomed place, And at the window, best of all, - H i s m o t h e r ' s s m i l i n g f a C e . ( V » t - He drew a picture as he went . jkX Of walls with holly bright, A cozy table spread for two S Wlth linen fresh and white, , > And while the tale of foreign lanoS And stormy seas he told, His mother's loving, wrinkled hand . Upon his curls of gold. * The dizzy flakes had ceased to fall. He strained his eyes to mark The glimmer of the lamp-lit panes, But all was still and dark. No joyous bark rang out to greet His footsteps as of yore-- The cold white snows unbroken lay Around the silent door. '* He saw upon the snowy SIB A wreath of immortelles, And then his orphaned cry arose Above the Christmas bells. 4 < His mother's lonely watch was No more to weep or wait. She walked In glory with the stars-- He had returned too late. --Minna Irving, ,ln Leslie's Weekly. A Christmas Hyirui The stars were shining In Judea's sky And all the air was singing Where angels, with their censers sway­ ing by, A golden flight were winging, And deep below the glory of the stars,' In humble peace reposing, A mother sat beside the manger bars A tender babe disclosing. O sweeter than Arabia's fragrant airs. From myriad roses sweeping. Fairer than children lisping at their prayers. This little babe lay sleeping. Can thia be He, the King upon Hit throne. This lowly lying stranger? And is it thus He comes into His OWtt, - TJnsceptered, In a manger? ~ - T Tea, this is He for whom ye long have yearned! For Him bring dearest treasure, And lay beside Him all your toil hath earned In overflowing measure. Not' the gold offering of older days Or shrinking lamb's oblation, , , But every Jewel Wrought of faith ano DrsLls 6 Of love and abnegation. --Louise Morgan SilL Christmas The silent skies are full of For who hath ears to hear; The winds are whispering each to each, The moon is calling to the beach. And stars their sacred wisdom teach Of faith and love and fear. But once the sky the silence broke, And song o'erflowed the earth; The midnight air with glory shook. And angels mortal language spotee^ • * When God our human nature tocH In Christ, the Savior's birth. And Christmas once is Christmas still; The gates through which He came, And forests wild and murmuring rill, And fruitful field and breezy hill, And all that else the wide world All, Are vocal with His name. Shall we not listen while they Sing This latest Christmas morn; And music hear in everything, And faithful lives in tribute bring To the great song which greets the Kln|F WhO comes when Christ is born? --Phillips Brooks. ' A Song for the Season A song fur the holly bough For the Yuletide beckons now. And our harvest-garnered sphere Showeth the white o' the yearl Brightly the berries burn Like the embers in the urn Of the day ere It declines Behind the crest of the pines. Green--a glory of green-- Are the leaves of vernal sheeafa,,30-y None of their shimmer lost V Under the touch of the frost.: '• W . Burnished berry and leaf Symbol the soul's belief In the fadeless love of Him Who sitteth. In heaven, above The saints and the seraphim At the right of the throne of IrfMPi. Center our faith and hope--• • We who yearn and grope--• In the love they typify (Glisten the garlands now!). So, under the Yuletide sky, ong for the holly bough! " lnton Scollard in Housekeeper. The Star of Bethlehem Out of the past's dark night There shines one star. Whose light Is more than countless constellations are. High in the Bast It gleams** ' This radiant star, Whose beams ., • » Are more to man than all the are. Still be thy light displayed# Oh, Bethle* ehem star! Nor fade Until the circling systems no more are, --Sennett Stephens. IMMH "In the Christmas Light" •Twas the Christmas time--so long ago!-- When he lay in his little place, With the curls we were kissing and lov­ ing so, Falling over his face; And this was his word, as be sighed good-night-- " "Wake me up in the Christmas light!" Oh. it was ever so long ago-- And yet It seems yesterday! And his arms were necklaced round me-- so-- As I bent, to hear him say Those last, sweet words, as he Signed •*Wake°me ujfin the Christmas light!" "Ity hands cracked and peeled, were so sore it was impossible for to do my housework. If I put them la "-atcr i was in agony for hours; an4„.;: if I tried to cook, the heat caused ijKy« tense pain. I consulted two doctors^ but their prescriptions were utterly . useless. And now after using one cak# of Cuticura Soap and one box of Cuti* cura Ointment my hands are entirely well, and I am very grateful. (Signed} : Mrs. Minnie Drew, 18 Dana St., Ro*» buiy/ Mass." "Uncle Joe's" Caustic Comment. ' *" Pennsylvanians ,in congress are di#> > - appointed and somewhat indigna:J| because house members from their state have not secured what they r4> t ; gard as a proper number of places oft . Important committees. Some of theife Interviewed Speaker Cannon on thie subject and mentioned that the small? , est states seemed to have been treat-1 ed with moire consideration than th|t >t great commonwealth which they rep­ resented. "Uncle Joe" let them talk tor a while, Then he set his jaw and '* said bluntly: "Gentlemen, it's qualit|^^ that counts, not quantity," and the in* _ ^ - ;ci||^-.was closed. . '-J •-- ---- --** ; . Chinese Rui«rr. • % ., - And now. when again. the Christmas comes With the lights, or shadows dim, They say, of the tears, that fall like rain: "It's the time she thinks of him!" He is saving once more, with his last good-night: MWake me up in the Christmas light!" •i-Frank L. Stanton, in the Atlanta Con­ stitution. Mistletoe Fast came the flecks of feather white Among the laurel trees Over the mountain; through the night, , Stirred by the Winter's breese." The winds a wedding anthem slcK' :.' With cold lips all aglow, The Snow Queen kissed her Forest sing 7 So came the mistletoe! --Kate Masterson. The Empress Dowager of Chlntt ; was sold into slavery at the age dt * eleven# to save her family from staft nation. Afterwards, she was present* ed to the late Emperor, and, upon his Wife's death, became Empress. Hef|\; feet were never bound, and she wai taught to read after persistent plead­ ing. The sterling qualities of thii wonderful woman, like those of Pills* •> bury's Vitos, have overcome every obj^£ stacle. And she holds herself at th#'^ head of China, as does Vitos bead of breakfast foods. " 1 No Visible Means of SuppOlrt. Mrs. Woodby Riter--What doe# your chusband do for a living? s' Mrs. Kautton (haughtily)--He's an author. "iSlt Mrs. Woodby Riter--I know; so 1# mine. But I say what does he do for a living? Asked and Answered. "Now, then," thundered the temper^ ance orator, "what causes most of the .. * crime in this world? Drink! And '*• what causes drink?" "Thirst!" cried a voice in the rear .. of the hall. - •• * More Flexible and Lasting, won't shake out or blow out; by usln Defiance Starch you obtain better suits than possible with any other brand and one-third more for Baml money. So Have We. "Have you ever been in Cort "No, but I've seen a lot of drawings of it."---Cleveland Leader. SERIOUS OPEBUlOm AVOIDED Unqualified Success of Lydla X. Pink gain's Vegetable Compound in the Case of Mrs. Fannie D. Fox. • One of the greatest triumphs of Lydia E. Pinkham's Vegetable Compound iaT 7 the conquering of woman's dread en- /"• emy, Tumor. , The growth of a tumor is so sly that frequently its presence is not suspected until it is far advanced. Jf/lrs. Fannie D.FOK So-called "wandering pains" may eome from its early stages, or the resence of danger may be made mani­ fest by profuse menstruation, accom­ panied by unusual pain, from the ovaries down the groin and thighs. If you have mysterious pains, if there, are indications of inflammation or disV; , v Slii^cliiciit, don't wait for * • nic to con rm your fears and go through thefl^l horrors of a hospital operation; secure • Lydia E. Pinkham's Vegetable Com­ pound right away and begin its use. Mrs. Pinkham" of Lynn, Mass., wil^!?^ give you her advice free of all charge^:', If you will write her about yourself.- Your letter will be seen toy women only. Dear Mrs. Pinkham:-- " I take the liberty to congratulate you the success I have had with your worn' medicine. Eighteen months ago my month­ lies stopped. Shortly after I felt ao badly thai I submitted to a thorough examination by apM physician and was told that I had a tumors^ on the uterus and would have to undergo anf^:•,« •••• operation. •IPOii " Soon after I read one of your advertise- ? "i ments and decided to give Lydia E. Pink- ham's Vegetable Compound a trial. After trying five bottles as directed the tumor is entirely gone. I have been examined by a > physician and he says I have no signs of a cuinor now. It has also brought my month-. lies around once more, and I am antirair well."--Fannie D. Fox, 7 Cbartnut SteesCpf " Bradford. Pa. 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